The legend of the Crimson Demon clan started from Suqing

#289 - Sylvia's Disaster

“Oh my, oh my, the Crimson Demon brat seems to have brought something amazing. For a moment, I was so surprised I didn't know what to say.”

“Liar, you clearly know everything.”

Barni's feigned surprise was somewhat irritating, and Zun Zun didn't hold back in calling him out. They were all millennia-old foxes; why was he playing 'Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio' with her?

“Hey, you! Don’t pretend you can’t hear me!”

An angry roar echoed.

Zun Zun lowered her head, looking at the small trinket on the counter.

The thing before her, about the length of an index finger and the thickness of a small chopstick, resembling a miniature snake toy, was none other than Sylvia, the Demon King Army executive who had wreaked havoc in the Crimson Demon Village.

As for why he was here, it all started when Zun Zun fought Sylvia.

When Zun Zun used the Kamehameha to defeat him, she thought the battle was over, but she inadvertently discovered a miniature Sylvia wriggling out of his dead body. Out of curiosity, she brought him back.

How strange.

Even though her adventurer card showed that Demon King Army executive Sylvia had been defeated, he was still alive and kicking. Could it be because his true form was a chimera?

The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

“You… wait, wait a minute, you…! Barni!? Aren't you Barni!? Hey, even though the mask on your head is a little different, you're Barni, right!? Quick, quickly catch this kid!”

Sylvia immediately started yelling when he saw Barni.

Barni stroked his chin.

“Hmm… a bit noisy. This could greatly reduce the value of the merchandise.”

To think he could consider a Demon King Army executive as merchandise; he was already a qualified merchant. No, considering Barni was a demon, should she say he was reverting to his true nature?

“Mr. Barni, what do you think of him?”

“I can only offer up to 100 million Eris.”

“Isn't 100 million a bit low? He's a Demon King Army executive, with a bounty of 300 million.”

“The past is the past, and the present is the present. He can't be called a Demon King Army executive now. If it weren't for the research value of his chimera body, I wouldn't spend so much to buy him.”

The two of them carried on their transaction as if no one else was there, while Sylvia, the object of the sale, looked terrified.

“Hey, hey… what are you saying, Barni? Aren't you Demon King Army executive Barni? Right? How could you be trading with a human? Besides… that pink apron you're wearing is really weird! What kind of store clerk are you!?”

“Correct answer! In fact, I have already resigned from my position as a Demon King Army executive and become an ordinary store clerk at this magic item shop! From now on, please treat me kindly.”

“Ah!?”

Sylvia let out a demonic screech.

It was normal that he didn't know. After all, he had received the mission to harass the Crimson Demon Village even earlier than Barni, so he didn't know about Barni's later experiences in Axel and his acting. Naturally, he didn't know that Barni had actually faked his death and become an ordinary magic item store clerk.

“Barni, have you betrayed the Demon King!?”

“Incorrect statement. I have not betrayed the Demon King. It's just that I agreed with the Demon King that if I died, I would no longer be a Demon King Army executive and would live for myself. Look, this is proof.”

Barni pointed to the number II on his mask.

“Are you kidding me!?”

Sylvia, as expected, couldn't accept such an absurd explanation.

“Hmm, too noisy.”

Barni casually grabbed a glass bottle, put Sylvia inside, and turned it upside down on the counter, so that Sylvia, who was constantly hitting the bottle, could only make muffled sounds.

“Alright, let's continue discussing the price. Let's talk frankly. I can offer up to 150 million Eris; any more than that wouldn't be worth it. If you agree, then it's a deal; if you don't, I won't add any more money.”

“Hmm… never mind, I won't sell him after all.”

“Oh my?”

He seemed surprised that Zun Zun could maintain her composure even with hundreds of millions of Eris at stake, and then spoke again.

“What's the reason?”

“I don't lack money… of course, that's just one reason. Another is that considering your partner, Barni, is likely a dangerous organization like the Demon King Army, I'd rather not sell Sylvia to prevent him from causing me more trouble.”

“Oh dear, you saw through me. Although that Demon King always says he hates Sylvia wanting to merge with him, if I told him about this, he would definitely bleed profusely. What a pity.”

Barni generously admitted that he wanted to trade with the Demon King Army and then extort them heavily.

Was this guy really a Demon King Army executive?

One extorting the Demon King Army, the other always stealing the Demon King Army's military expenses to subsidize her magic item shop. This shop owner and clerk were really…

“Oh, speaking of which, where's Wiz?”

“That idiot shopkeeper went to…”

“I'm back, Mr. Barni. I don't know if it's just my imagination, but I feel like Beldia's head looks like it's swollen up a bit, should we get him a bigger fish tank?”

“As you can see, she went to change the water in the fish tank.”

Although Zun Zun had told Wiz to change the Dullahan's water every day before she left, it was just to scare him and prevent him from thinking about escaping. She never thought Wiz would actually change his water every day.

How much did she hate the Dullahan? Or was it out of kindness? That's even more terrifying.

“Ah, Zun Zun! Welcome!”

“Hello, Miss Wiz, you look well.”

Wiz, seeing her, walked over quickly with a happy expression, placing the fish tank on the counter.

“Thanks to Mr. Barni, the magic item shop has finally made a profit for the first time after a long period of losses. I'm so touched! Also thanks to your potions, Zun Zun, thank you so much!”

Zun Zun accepted her thanks.

In reality, it was indeed the case. If it weren't for her stamina potions and the high 30% split, Wiz wouldn't have been able to last until now.

“Zun Zun, you came this time… oh, what's this?”

Wiz noticed the glass bottle on the counter, and Sylvia, who had fainted from oxygen deprivation, and quickly ran over to open the bottle.

She forgot that the bottle was quite airtight.

“Isn't this Mr. Sylvia!? Although he's smaller, he's definitely Mr. Sylvia, right? Mr. Sylvia, Mr. Sylvia, are you okay? What's going on?”

Wiz looked very nervous.

Even if it was out of consideration for a colleague, it was still very unreasonable.

Zun Zun told her about the events in the Crimson Demon Village and asked, “Miss Wiz, aren't you very opposed to the Demon King Army harming ordinary people? Why are you so worried about Sylvia?”

“W-well… the Crimson Demons go to the Demon King Army for picnics every year, throwing their magic and trash there, and also harassing them almost every so often, slaughtering a large number of the Demon King Army's subordinates…”

“Alright, you don't need to say anymore.”

If she kept talking, the Crimson Demons would become the villains. And using the word 'slaughter' was a bit of an exaggeration?

“Ha… ha… I thought I was going to suffocate to death… N-no! Where is this…!?”

The miniature Sylvia slowly got up.

He clearly showed hostility when he saw Zun Zun and Barni, but he quickly noticed the third person.

“Wiz!?”

“Yes, it's me. Long time no see, Mr. Sylvia.”

“Wiz, you quickly…”

Sylvia originally wanted to shout for help, but he quickly suppressed the idea, looking at Wiz and then at Barni.

“Wiz, this is your shop, right? I remember when you were in the Demon King's Castle, you kept saying you wanted to open a magic item shop, and then every time the shop was about to go out of business, you would secretly steal money from the Demon King's Castle treasury to subsidize the shop. The Demon King was so worried about it.”

“Wahhh! Mr. Sylvia, please don't say such embarrassing things! N-no, Zun Zun, Mr. Barni…!”

Wiz was extremely flustered.

It's okay, Miss Wiz, we already knew about your talent (negative) in opening a shop, so we won't make fun of you.

And Sylvia finally understood why Barni had just called himself a store clerk, and stopped talking… which was impossible! He quickly saw the Dullahan in the fish tank.

No, it was a Dullahan with only his head left.

“Beldia? Hey… isn't that Beldia? Why is he here! I remember the Demon King said he went missing in Axel, how could he… only have his head left!? D-don't tell me you guys teamed up against the Demon King Army…”

The more Sylvia thought about it, the more frightened he became.

He couldn't figure out what was going on, plotting against the Demon King Army was one thing, but the mastermind had even extended their reach to the Demon King Army executives, and even Barni and Wiz had been turned! That was really… wait, Hans? Hans the Poison Slime?

Slimes could grow by devouring objects, and the Demon King Army executive Hans was even more powerful. If he could grow by using Hans's abilities, and then merge with him, wouldn't he be able to escape smoothly?

“Hans? Hey, where's Hans!?”

“Where? Isn't he right here?”

“I don't see him!”

“Here.”

“—————!?”

Seeing Zun Zun pulling on his clothes, an extremely uneasy feeling welled up in Sylvia's heart. He opened his mouth and spoke in an incredibly dry, hoarse voice.

“Y-you, you guys, turned Hans into…”

“That's right. I made him into clothes and wear him. Slime clothes are really good, warm in winter and cool in summer, and the defense is excellent. Unfortunately, probably because slimes aren't very popular, female adventurers are quite resistant to them.”

The fact that she had turned a Demon King Army executive into clothes completely shattered Sylvia's worldview.

“You… you're a demon.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

Zun Zun's smile was terrifyingly kind.